That may be one of the worst examples of service I've seen in a Mexican restaurant. First off, the handicapped walkway was closed off, and my mother, who needs to use it, was not able to. Secondly, the service was so slow, to the point that we waited 15 minutes for someone to come and take our drink orders. The longer we had to wait, the more frustrated we got, because all of us hadn't eaten anything this afternoon. I realize the restaurant was packed, but you can be more efficient than that. I saw the lobby cleaning workers being more efficient at their jobs than the waiters were, and one customer from another table got a to-go box for his order, because he didn't want to have to wait for the waiters to bring it to him. Thirdly, all the waiters were so focused on clanging their bells that hurt our ears for the birthday parties that were right next to us, that my dad didn't bother to order anything. When the waiters finally did get to us, the service was like a car wash. In, out and no emotion or conversation whatsoever about it. The steak I got on my tacos de asada was chewy, and the refried beans tasted of Cajun seasoning. Who does that in a Mexican restaurant?? We had to wait equally as long as our drink orders to get the check. To make matters the worst they could possibly be, we were charged 4% extra just for using a basic credit card, for an order of tacos de asada and an extra taco with beans that my mom got. The waiter didn't bother to ask the manager about it or anything. She just shrugged her shoulders, as if that's what El Sombrero trains you to do. That was the last straw, and as soon as the ticket was finally paid, we walked out the door immediately, and we will not be back under any circumstances. read more

Love love love this place, and the new location is so much larger than the last! The chips are actually salted unlike other places and the margaritas are strong there's a sweet lady who always brings out the salsa and talking to her is like a breath of fresh air, she's such a sweetheart! read more

food was cold, I asked to be moved as my back was in pain. The greeter said the booths that have the soft back were closed, as were getting to bag eating their the waiter had us move the soft booths. I have eaten at the location on McCann many times when I worked, awsome food. Music hurt our ears, to fricking loud. We live in Gilmer, Im from Ca and Ut much better food. read more

Very disappointed with the food for how much they're charging. I ordered fajita enchiladas (it's only two) w/ beans and rice and it was 19. The tortilla was soggy and gross, I only ate 1. I think this place is only hyped about their drinks and happy hour, so if you want to drink then go for it, but come here and eat with the fam, don't waist your money. Theirs better restaurants down the road than this. (Pine tree road to be exact) read more

Food was passable but nothing to brag about. I order the steak fajita quesadilla and I got something that was loaded with grilled onions, grilled bell pepper, and cheese but I had to look for the steak. My grand daughter order the kids chicken fajita and it was nothing but a lot of cheese and a little chicken. It was busy and they might have been under staffed but the service was extremely slow. They did replenish the chips and salsa four times while we were waiting. I ate so many chips I wasn't hungry when the order arrived. At the end of the meal, I was handed the bill for approx. $116 (there were six of us) but when the bill was returned the total was approx. $122. I hadn't been informed that they add a charge for using a credit card. It would have been nice to have known that read more

Food was bland, cold, and not how it was ordered . Waiter didn't care we were there. Complained, several times. To a deaf ear. Margaritas were nasty. Chips stale and greasy. Corn & flour tortillas- hard. Green sauce was terrible. Not anything like what I had several months ago. New owners?????? read more

Used to be really good, it's okay now. Food was lacking last few visits and this used to be a fav. We now have to pay for the restaurant to run credit/debit cards. This got under my skin as that is a business expense I believe the business itself should pay for. Makes me question why are they doing this now, are they looking for people to pay cash to lessen paper trails? read more

extremely loud on Monday night and after the ticket came they added 4% just to use a card. will never go back

Actually, this has not been a favorite of mine in the past BUT after eating here tonight, I do believe I have changed my mind. The food was really good, chips fresh, tea super good, so-papilla delicious, service great. I will definitely return!! read more

El Sombrero - a plate of nachos - Mexican Near Me - Longview, Texas

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What, can't hear you... huh?? What! Definitely Louder than a Gun's 'n Roses concert... food slightly better than Taco Bell. Can't tell what the hype was all about. read more

Food is alright, but they nickel and dime you for everything. 4% charge on credit card for using credit card, $3.00 for queso on enchiladas. Don't recommend, won't be back read more

This Mexican food place gets a LOT of hype in Longview, but it's really just a typical Mexican food restaurant with awful service. The place can be completely empty and it will take you an hour to eat there. I also judge a Mexican food place by its salsa, and theirs is mediocre. The one good thing and saving grace, though, is their queso blanco. It's by far their greatest menu item and the most popular. Overall, not the worst but not the best. I've grown up coming to this restaurant and have never had rave reviews. If you're in the area and craving Mexican food then this is your place, otherwise there are better options. read more

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First time visit to this restaurant based on co-worker recommendation. Ordered a Fajita Chicken Taco Salad w/o sour cream and paid $1 extra for pickled jalapeños to go! Maria was my front counter server. Once I received my order, I didn't see jalapeños or tomatoes on salad. Checked my To-Go, prior to leaving, as life experiences have taught me. Maria was talking to a young man and assured me the jalapeños were in salad. Get to my hotel, eating salad, and not only are jalapeños not there, but there aren't any tomatoes or shredded cheese. Called restaurant back, the manager or Tito, manager of day are NOT there. I'm speaking with the culprit or face of their business that lacks customer service skills. The salad taste was good, but I didn't get what my hard earned money paid for in ordering. Maria didn't want my credit card transaction information. She wanted to know why I was rude. I wasn't rude. I'm NOT happy that insolent employees like her are talking to friends instead of getting my order correct. El Sombrero, place adults that understand customer service at your front counter. I need a refund and an apology! #smh read more

El Sombrero - Mexican Near Me - Longview, Texas

Visiting the area and wanted to try a new place for Mexican food. It was very crowded, but the wait wasn't long at all. The chips were excellent. Not the usual flour, but corn instead. The salsa was also very good. Appetizers were guacamole and a white cheese/chorizo dip. Both were excellent. Margaritas were also large and very good. I ordered enchiladas Miguel, which are 3 beef enchiladas w/rice and beans. They were the same as you'd get in any Mexican place; ground beef rolled in a flour tortilla w/red sauce, but I'd order them again. Service was great and friendly staff. We'd go back next time we're in town. read more

A very expansive menu and good food. Especially enjoyed chips that were served warm. Salsa was tasty, but not as spicy as preferred. Margaritas on the rocks could have been served with less ice and more tequila. These were somewhat overpriced based on these shortcomings. Other than that, would definitely try again as Longview's options for Mexican food are somewhat lacking. read more

El Sombrero - Mexican Near Me - Longview, Texas

After spending many years in Atlanta having white cheese queso and chilie relenos which were superb, we move to Dallas for years and have no luck finding food as good as what we had at an El Sombrero there, we hit the jackpot in East Texas. El Sombrero in Longview has all the greatness and then some with the family atmosphere. The food is always good quality and the service is personal. It has become our family haunt with visits sometimes several times a week. Margaritas are excellent, ask for an extra float of your favorite tequila. We have come to know the wait staff and others as part of our family. Ask about steak medallions or the stuffed avocado which are not on the menu. On some weekends there is live entertainment. We recently celebrated my husbands birthday there as we do many in our family of six. Service was fantastic. read more

El Sombrero - Birthday sopapilla nachos! Enough to share with an entire table. - Mexican Near Me - Longview, Texas

I have to agree with the reviewer whose honesty was questioned. For similar reasons, I have been boycotting this place for a few years. The food here is fine. Outstanding? No. Unique, as one reviewer says? Absolutely not. This joint uses white-colored cheese instead of yellow. They also add some cilantro to their (otherwise bland) salsa. It's good, yes. But there are several places in Longview (including a restaurant across the street) with good Tex-Mex food. Here's the reason I will never again spend money at El Sombrero: When they opened, my wife and her mother went there and they raved about it. So, I went to decide for myself. Again, the food was good. Certainly worthy of a return visit. And so we returned ... Multiple times. The owners (from Minnesota, I believe) were polite and seemingly happy to have our business. Unfortunately, they were also very disorganized. The staff, at that time, consisted mostly of people who didn't understand a lick of English. Our orders were screwed up right and left. Yet, we continued to come back. One evening, we placed a to-go order. My wife ordered some sort of shrimp dish that she'd had a few times and liked; I ordered my standard (tamales, enchiladas) and some rice. -- We went to the strip-mall location and picked up the order. After settling in at home, my wife discovered that her shrimp dish was served up as a chicken dish with an entirely different sauce, vegetables and so on. So, what's a person to do? I called the restaurant. Me: Hi. We just had a to-go order for Adam and you guys sent us home with some sort of chicken dish instead of the shrimp dish my wife ordered. Owner: Oh, sorry. Let me find the kitchen check and find out what went wrong. ....30 seconds or so passes.... Owner: Sir, I see that we messed up the shrimp order, but I also notice that we sent you home with a large-sized rice when you only paid for a small. And that comment by the owner -- that attitude -- prompted me to never give him any business again. Rice costs about 5 cents per cup. 10 ounces of rice vs. 6 ounces of rice hardly justifies a regular customer's complaint that the kitchen gave us a $7 chicken dish vs. a $12 shrimp dish. Besides, both were mistakes of El Sombrero ... the owner ... and his non-English-speaking kitchen help. As the other reviewer said, be careful. The El Sombrero people create two checks, and the Minnesota version doesn't necessarily match the Chihuahua version. On top of that, they'll try to pin it on you, as they did with us. If you are one of those people who believe that El Sombrero is 'your place,' just know that the owner(s) will disappoint you if you ever bring their error to their attention. read more

Wow. Don't know what happened to this place. Cheese Enchiladas so hard to cut we needed to saw with a knife.....saw! Stuffed Avocado was horrible! This was once such a good place. After this visit, I read through all the reviews for the past 6 or 7 months and they are all saying all not good it is here anymore. This is just sad. Sorry to see it come to this. read more

Poor business model! Prices are outrageous and they charge you extra if you use a credit card. They also charge an extra $4 if someone just wants to sit with you and not eat! read more

This place is one of my favriote Mexican Food restaurants.. great food, fast service.

Overall, El Sombrero has average Tex Mex, which is to say perfectly satisfactory if not anything special. I have trouble believing that El Sombrero invented queso blanco (I've had it many other places) but I can say that it is good. The salsa had a good flavor but not enough spice to my taste. I had the grilled tilapia fish tacos. They are served on corn tortillas with grilled onions and avocado. They were very good. Others in our party had enchiladas and stuffed poblanos, which they liked. I've only been here once and probably won't return as I am just passing through. Based on my one experience, I'd say you can count on getting good Tex Mex at El Sombrero. read more

This review is for take out service. Called in an order, but still had to wait 40 minutes. Take out parking spots are clearly posted at the front which is nice. Had to hand over our card instead of taking the card numbers on the phone. Oh well for contactless payment. They seemed a little unorganized here. Food was good, low rating is for the service part. Maybe with a little more practice they will get better. #eatathome read more

Ordered food to bring home and when I got home, they couldn't have even managed to get a beef burrito right. When I called, the person on the phone wasted my time by continuously asking where I sat, who my waiter was. I just wanted the food replaced. Won't go here again. Aggregating and a waste of time. read more

We used to love to go to El Som but ever since they started charging to use a credit card we go somewhere else.

Best queso in Longview? Ehhh. I think I'll find better. I ordered that and a chicken fajita quesadilla. The meat was a little on the dry, unseasoned side. The rice was okay. I'll give it another go, maybe, if someone takes me out there- but I'm on the search to find better Mexican food!! Service was very good, though !!! read more

El Sombrero - This is the queso (small) It's average - Mexican Near Me - Longview, Texas

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I had the grande combo and it is terrific. The staff is very friendly and attentive. The salsa is medium spicy hot and enjoyable. I really like this place's atmosphere and will definitely return to try another item from their extensive menu read more

The establishment is great. This app is garbage. Yelp is trash. And pricks who use this app to get revenge because of your inexcusable social awkwardness can eat my ass. :) read more

Moving from South Texas I would say this is the closes you can get to authentic Mexican food in a sea of TEXMEX restaurants. I judge a Mexican restaurant by the hot sauce and chips and over all favor of food. El sombrero has actual spicy hot sauce with a hint of cilantro, their dishes have flavor with out being over salted or being to bland. Thankfully the northern Texans have not sucked the spice and flavor from this restaurant like they have from so many others. I have also indulged with a margarita, it's not the best I've ever had but it definitely gets the job done at a fair price. read more

Hands down my favorite Mexican food in East Texas. Their white queso and CoronaRita's are a staple in my life! Nachos are great as well as salsa and anything else I've ever eaten here. Be prepared to wait, if coming for dinner, because fortunately the rest on Longview finds this place as delicious as I do. My family has been coming here for years and will be returning for many more! read more

Had a super friendly server . I'm so sorry I can't recall your name . We both got the Verde Quesadilla and it was absolutely delicious as it is every time I go ! Love the consistency of quality food . Thankful for our Tex Mex fix . Anytime we are gone from Longview it's so comforting to come eat here to feel at home . read more

I have never seen such rude management in my life. Dude comes to table assuming we are mad, with a whole entire attitude. Puts his hand in my cousins face telling him to calm down. When he was the one with an attitude. Getting loud with us because we asked a simple question about a $4 charge. Rude. Rude. And unprofessional. Not okay. The food is good. But the service is not worth the money. Will not return because of how rude the manager was. As someone who has worked at restaurants, we call a manager to DIFFUSE situations not to escalate them. Get yourself together, dude. For real for real. If someone knows the owner please tag him. Thanks!!! read more

We came here for lunch and it was packed. They do a great job at getting people served quickly so they're in and out. During prime time lunch service it was only about a 10 minute wait. Once seated, we were brought chips and salsa. The chips were warm and fresh and the salsa was delicious. It had just the right amount of heat without any chunky bits of onions (which I dislike) and was overall well blended. We ordered the small white queso to start. Y'all! They don't call it home of the original white queso for nothing. It was perfect in every way. I got the chicken fajita nachos without onions and bell peppers. They didn't give me any issues with modifying my order and it was done correctly. Our food was served in a timely manner and the time flies by with the complimentary chips, salsa, and TVs to watch. My entree was amazing. It was well seasoned grilled chicken with roasted tomatoes covered in queso on top of chips. I would definitely recommend and we'll be making that hour drive again soon for more! read more

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I wish Longview would get a good Mexican restaurant. Every one is just a three star joint. Mi Casita is a taco shop so it doesn't count. Food here is ok. Nothing special. Salsa is ok. Nothing special. Everything is average just like every other Mexican restaurant in Longview. On a side note, service was poor tonight. Slow to take the order. Forgot my jalapenos. Missed the extra plate. Got the attention of another worker to ask again and he rolled his eyes. Mediocrity and apathy are the two things that El Sombrero has in plenty of supply. read more

Can't get enough of their white queso! El Sombrero is my favorite Mexican restaurant in Longview.

Asked for a booth because we have a small child. We were told none were available and we would have to wait. Proceeded to watch several parties enter and be seated in booths. This place has always had challenges with service and I'm close to just taking them off my list. read more

Worst Mexican food that I have had in Longview Texas the beef fajitas actually grow in your mouth as you chew on them they are so tough and tasteless. Guacamole was a little salty. tacos were lacking cheese tomatoes excetera only lettuce. the white cheese dip was good and so was the salsa. read more

Best Mexican place in Longview. Salsa is always fresh and fajita chicken is always cooked perfectly!!!

Stuffed Avocado is really good. Love the Salsa. Both of the Bowls of soup, also is Delicious. Big portions. Great Service and Staff!

I've been here multiple times i went today when I got my salsa and took a bite and there was a long black hair in my salsa

We are new to Texas, always looking for good Mexican food, a new friend told us El Sombrero. We went today and wow!!!! The food is fantastic! We had a wonderful waiter, Eli, he was a lovely young man, he was so happy to work for a great restaurant, bragging of how they treat their staff well. We give El Sombrero 5 well deserved stars. read more